Reviews

Caroline's Heart by Austin Chant

tetiana's review against another edition

5.0

What an amazing read! So atmospheric, with lovely characters, and superb writing. Definitely will be checking our everything else this writer has to offer.

godlizza's review against another edition

5.0

Holy shiiit I wasn't expecting to love this as much as I did but Roy and Cecily were both great as characters and their relationship was so sweet. Everything felt so organic, and despite being a short story everything felt developed and perfectly paced. I was sad to see this story end, I wanted to read more about these characters and their life together! Also gotta love a t4t romance <3

31daysinaugust's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

thebookworm777's review against another edition

lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

A very cute, light, and quick queer read. 

cloudtet's review against another edition

5.0

Caroline's Heart is two plates of cover with pure delight sandwiched between them. I am convinced I could read anything Chant decides to write and enjoy it tremendously, which is already a great starting point. When, additionally, the subject matter at hand is exactly my cup of tea, one has a concoction that, when ingested, is very likely to charm my trousers off. And that's exactly what happened. Only a few pages in my trousers vanished, and they remained missing for the remainder of the book. (Not in actuality, but it fit well with the joke.)

Set in an alternative Texas and Oregon in the year 1885, Caroline's Heart is the convergence of two like-hearted souls, one a quiet, but curious cowboy lacking a sense of belonging in the world, and one a solitary, defensively hostile, and seemingly cynical witch brought to such traits by the loss of a loved one.

Chant's prose is almost dishearteningly good, and perhaps for that very reason all the more enjoyable to behold. They've got a poetic way with words, and seem to know exactly how to teasingly tug at the heart, which is exploited on more occasions than one throughout. It's annoying as hell, and I want more of it.

Caroline's Heart truly proves two things: 1) length is by no means a necessity to develop a story and its characters enough to become invested, and 2) a great story can very well be born in simplicity.

Verdict: 10/10

inconceivablebluefox's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

cas_the_second's review

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

slugreads's review

emotional inspiring reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

why_erin's review against another edition

emotional hopeful fast-paced

4.25

goosebump420's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

A short, sweet read with a little bit of everything: romance, mystery, and a good helping of magical realism to top it off. Who can resist a queer Wild West romance?